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Wednesday, 12 September 2012

Illuminated Artwork, Dramatic Paths & Distant Memories

The sunlight shining through these ancient painted glass panels made me stop dead in my tracks which is why I have titled this image the "Divine Picture Show". It seemed to cast a perfect mirror image of the artwork onto the stone and held me transfixed for a while before I snapped out of it and pulled myself together enough to capture the shot before the light faded. This beautiful window can be found in the Church of St. Nicolas in Shoreham-By-Sea in Sussex on the South coast of England. It is an ancient and beautiful church and has an entry recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086.

"Way To Go" is the title of image two for today. Natural leading lines plus a few man made ones really add to the impact of this image. The path leads down to the sea at Cuckmere Haven where the chalk cliffs spring up from nowhere out of the ground to form the "Seven Sisters" and one of the most famous coastlines in Britain. The stark contrasts fascinate me in this image. The small shrubs and trees were already in silhouette before I decided to process the scene in black and white. Taking all the color out of it made the image all the more intense and moody.

My last image for today is "The Paddling Pool". Looks can be deceiving. The small white bridge actually spans nothing but concrete and paving slabs, no water flows beneath it at all. It used to though ... many years ago. As a child I remember my mother bringing me to this park (known as "The Level") in Brighton, Sussex, England. Back in the days when we used to have a proper summer with sunshine and heatwaves I used to splash around here and paddle my way about. Back then the pool was wider and the water flowed under two bridges (one in shot and one behind this viewpoint). It was a favourite place to hide and keep cool whilst still being in the water ... of course I thought I was hiding but my mother always knew where I was and what I was up to because that's what mothers do. I have no idea why they filled in and paved over the side sections, it seems a shame to me but at least I have those distant memories of the bridges serving a purpose and of that hot, bright glowing orb in the sky that made our Summer breaks so much fun.